Existing research indicates that underrepresented-in-STEM racially minoritized students with similar academic preparation are less likely than their counterparts to persist in STEM, raising the question of factors that may contribute to racial disparities in STEM participation beyond academic preparation. We extend the current literature by first…

With the need to increase Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) graduates, higher education institutions need to identify and improve ways to increase underrepresented STEM student retention rates. Cypress College in Southern California implemented a program called STEM[superscript 2] (Strengthen Transfer Education and…

The purpose of this qualitative case study was to examine the perceptions of minority students and their families in a school district located in the Mississippi Delta Region as they related to the disparate participation in advanced academic programs by ethnic and racial minority students as compared to their White/Caucasian peers. Working within…

We analyzed a population-based cohort (N = 10,922) to investigate the onset and stability of racial and ethnic disparities in advanced (i.e., above the 90th percentile) science and mathematics achievement during elementary school as well as the antecedent, opportunity, and propensity factors that explained these disparities. About 13% to 16% of…

Existing research indicates that racially minoritized students with similar academic preparation are less likely than their represented peers to persist in STEM, raising the question of factors that may contribute to racial disparities in STEM participation beyond academic preparation. We extend the current literature by first examining race-based…

Objective: Community college transfer pathways are critical for advancing gender equity in STEM. Yet, community college students are often ignored within studies of women's participation in undergraduate computing. In a first effort to address this gap in the literature, this paper explores the composition of transfer-intending computing students…

While significant advancements in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) are at the forefront of society, there continues to be a considerable gender and racial gap in the advancement of women of color in these fields (Espinosa, 2011; Ong et al., 2011; Shein, 2018). Low completion rates are even greater when looking at Black and…

Undergraduate student participation in out-of-class activities yields a range of documented benefits and represents an area of study that can inform efforts to increase persistence in science, technology, engineering or mathematics (STEM) majors, particularly for underrepresented groups. This study was designed to explore the impact of selected…

The construct of science identity has been gaining attention across various domains in the educational arena. To date, however, no studies have used a person-centered quantitative approach within science identity research that is based upon traditional identity theory. Hence, there is an absence of a theoretical underpinning of the number of…

While research on school suspensions and its impact on students is not new, scholars have not yet explored whether there is a link between school suspensions and high school students' preparation for success in STEM. Using nationally representative data, this study explored the relationship of suspensions to math outcomes while considering…

This study aimed to better understand the relationships between U.S. high school students' STEM-related educational experiences, expectancy-value attitudes, achievement, course-taking, and college major choices. Analyses employed data from three waves of the High School Longitudinal Study of 2009 (HSLS:09) and used structural equation modeling to…

It is widely agreed that attitudes about mathematics play an important role in students' performance, choice, and persistence in STEM. Motivational theories posit this link and suggest that differences in these attitudes should explain in part why female, Black, Hispanic, low-income, and first-generation students are underrepresented in STEM…

Is exposing students to role models an effective tool for diversifying science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM)? So far, the evidence for this claim is mixed. Here, we set out to identify systematic sources of variability in STEM role models' effects on student motivation: If we determine "which role models" are effective…

This dissertation explores the social, institutional, and structural conditions believed to be at the center of the racial disparities that influence access and participation within secondary and post-secondary environments of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education. More specifically, this study investigates the…

Analyzing the test scores of more than 10,000,000 students who participated in the Advanced Placement (AP) math exams from 1997 to 2019, this study examined the direction and magnitude of the trend in gender disparity by race in participation in and top achievement on AP Calculus AB, Calculus BC, and Statistics exams. The results of this study…